Master of Professional Accounting

Learning Goal

Graduates of this degree will be:

Knowledgeable and skilled in those areas necessary for entry into the accounting profession and to satisfy the educational requirements of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Australia (ICAA) and the Certified Practicing Accountants (CPA).

Learning objectives to achieve these goals

On successful completion of this degree students will be able to:

• Demonstrate competencies, professional skills and knowledge in relation to contemporary accounting issues and practices including financial reporting, local and international accounting methods and basic concepts associated with information for managers within a firm;
• Identify and demonstrate professional skills in knowledge bases and techniques in the related disciplines of economics, management, finance, auditing and business information systems;
• Critically analyse and think strategically in relation to accounting and business analysis issues and problems including the role of management accounting information in strategic performance management;
• Apply appropriate professional and analytical skills to address specific accounting and business issues including financial mathematics, finance concepts and asset pricing necessary for effective decision making;
• Identify and critically evaluate professional accounting and business issues emerging from strategic developments in practice and accounting regulation;
• Explain the role of cost information in organisations and key financial business processes underpinning organisational activities;
• Analyse contemporary accounting issues within the framework of agency theory, capital markets theory, human judgement theory and the economic perspective of the taxpayer to various forms of taxation; and
• Analyse the impact of aspects of the law on accounting practice including the ethical, legal and professional environments in which audit and assurance provider operate and the framework within which regulatory aspects of corporate reporting are conducted.

Core subjects

Seven accounting subjects

1. The Selection Committee will evaluate the applicant’s ability to pursue the course successfully using the following criteria:

• One-year of documented work and/or professional experience;
• Successful completion of an undergraduate degree in business/commerce or equivalent or successful completion of sufficient business/commerce breadth subjects as part of a non-commerce New Generation degree to meet any pre-requisites;
• The applicant’s submitted statement of intent in seeking entry; and
• Performance on the GMAT unless the applicant has metone of the approved conditions for GMAT exemption.

2. The Selection Committee may conduct interviews and tests and call for referee reports and employer references to elucidate any of the matters referred to above.

For the purpose of considering requests for Reasonable Adjustments under the Disability Standards for Education (Cwth 2005), and Students Experiencing Academic Disadvantage Policy, academic requirements for this course are articulated in the Course Description, Course Objectives and Generic Skills of this entry.

The University is dedicated to provide support to those with special requirements. Further details on the disability support scheme can be found at the Disability Liaison Unit website: http://www.services.unimelb.edu.au/disability/

• Competent in a range of professional skills and knowledge in areas necessary for entry into the accounting profession;
• Strategic thinkers in financial and management accounting within an organisation;
• An efficient in financial decision maker within an organisation;
• Effective written and oral communicators as evidenced through financial report writing, risk assessment exercises and class presentations;
• Ethical in their approach to work practices through course work related to corporate governance and auditing;
• Adept at problem solving though financial decision making and in relation to accounting issues and processes;
• Efficient in their access and retrieval skills in relation to financial information from a range of sources; and
• Collaborative in their approach to decision making and problem solving.

• Strategic thinking skills in accounting in relation to costs and performance for organisations;
• Decision making skills in relation to financial and accounting decisions within an organisation;
• Communication skills through financial report writing, risk assessment exercises and class presentations;
• Ethical approaches to work practices through course work related to corporate governance and auditing;
• Problem solving skills though financial decision making and in relation to accounting issues and processes;
• Access and retrieval skills in relation to accounting and finance information from a range of sources; and
• Collaboration and team work skills though class exercises.